Marc MacAulay claims South Lanarkshire Sports Awards crown

Karate star takes home top regional prize

Yamakai coach Jim Ross, left, and Marc MacAulay when he won the EK Sports Awards

Karate star Marc MacAulay is the cream of South Lanarkshire this week after he scooped best adult male performer at the region’s Sports Awards.

The 19-year-old, from Lindsayfield, claimed the top prize at the South Lanarkshire Sports Performers of the Year awards at Hamilton Town House last Wednesday evening (June 18).

Marc, a member of the town’s Yamakai Karate Club in East Mains, was rewarded for his stellar performances in 2013 which included a gold medal win at the British Championships and his selection for the Scotland Under-21 squad at both the European and World Championships.

He defeated rugby player James McLaren, bowler Iain McLean and boccia player Stephen McGuire to the crown and Marc now adds the South Lanarkshire Award to the East Kilbride prize he won in May. It’s not the first time he has celebrated an awards double as he also won the EK and South Lanarkshire junior male prizes last year. Marc was unable to accept his award at the Town House as he is on holiday in Greece.

However, Marc’s coach Jim Ross, 6th Dan, hailed him as the finest fighter the club has ever produced and reckons this accolade is just reward for his dedication to the sport.

He told the News: “People forget that sports like Karate are not full-time jobs and the amount of training Marc puts in per week, not just in the Dojo, but in the gym and out running, is phenomenal.

“It’s not unusual for Marc to come to training on Monday nights having just finished a run.

“As I stated after he recently won the EK Sports Award, Marc has been training with me since he was five years old and very seldom misses a session.

“His performances in competition over the last five years have been remarkable.

“He must easily be the most consistent medal winner the club has ever produced, and when you consider some of the fighters we have produced over this time, that’s a helluva an accolade.

“The mark of real champions is they never sit still, they never dwell too long on their last success. Marc is always looking to the next medal.

“To have that kind of desire to succeed is what makes him a standout athlete.”